The National Restaurant Assn. (NRA), the leading business association for the restaurant industry, and Winsight LLC, a leading information services company in the foodservice industry, have announced the formation of an equity partnership through which NRA will become an equity partner of Winsight, and Winsight will assume operational ownership and execution of the annual NRA Restaurant, Hotel-Motel Show.

The NRA show, the largest annual gathering of foodservice professionals in the world, will continue to be branded under the name of the association as part of a 45-year sponsorship agreement for the exclusive branding, content and promotion of the show. NRA will have an advisory seat on Winsight’s board of directors. Winsight’s publication, Restaurant Business, will become the official magazine of the association.

This partnership is intended to serve the emerging and changing needs of the foodservice industry. Through the partnership, NRA said it gains new opportunities to deliver best-in-class content, drive member value, broadcast advocacy messages, advance the industry’s stories and provide data-driven insights to fuel the restaurant and foodservice industry’s growth and profitability.

“This collaboration will allow us to grow the impact and reach of our show while also elevating the level of service we provide to our members, including enhanced member benefits, advocacy, training and certification, and content,” NRA president and chief executive officer Dawn Sweeney. “The new relationship with Restaurant Business gives us an additional avenue to expand and amplify the stories important to the industry and our members.”

The most recent NRA show drew 65,000 attendees and covered more than 700,000 sq. ft. of exhibit space. In 2019, the show will celebrate its centennial anniversary, May 18-21, 2019, at McCormick Place in Chicago, Ill. The association’s board of directors and related meetings will continue to be held during this time.

Mary Pat Heftman will become president of the Restaurant Show Group at Winsight, and the current convention team will move to Winsight as well. “This strategic partnership accelerates our efforts to bring show attendees and exhibitors better and deeper programing and expedites the digital transformation taking place throughout the industry,” Heftman said.

“Collaborating with the National Restaurant Assn. provides a tremendous opportunity for Winsight and its team. Through products such as Technomic’s company profiles, menu insights and consumer trends, combined with our media business’s vast market knowledge and audience intelligence platform, we look forward to serving the ever-increasing needs of the show and the industry,” Winsight CEO Mike Wood said. “We welcome Mary Pat and her team to Winsight, and we are confident our resources, combined with those of the National Restaurant Assn., have created a partnership dedicated to the success of the restaurant and foodservice industries of today and tomorrow.”

Financial terms were not disclosed. The companies signed the agreement Sept. 28 and expect to close the transaction in the fourth quarter of 2018.